"the stock market crashed on Black Friday"; "a calamitous defeat"; "the battle was a disastrous end to a disastrous campaign"; "such doctrines, if true, would be absolutely fatal to my theory"- Charles Darwin; "it is fatal to enter any war without the will to win it"- Douglas MacArthur; "a fateful error"

To boycott something or someone, usually as part of an industrial dispute.

black(Noun)

In chess and similar games, the person playing with the black set of pieces.

At this point black makes a disastrous move.

black(Adjective)

absorbing all light and reflecting none; dark and colourless.

black(Adjective)

without light.

black(Adjective)

Relating to persons of (usually noticeable) negroid African descent or their culture. Also people of Aborigine or Maori descent.

black(Adjective)

Bad; evil; ill-omened.

black(Adjective)

Illegitimate, illegal or disgraced.

black(Adjective)

Overcrowded.

black(Adjective)

Without any cream, milk or creamer.

Jim drinks his coffee black, but Ellen prefers it with creamer.

black(Adjective)

The standard denomination of the playing pieces of a board game deemed to belong to the "black" set, no matter what the actual colour.

The black pieces in this set are in fact made of dark blue glass.

black(Adjective)

Related to the Christian Democratic Union.

After the election, the parties united in a black-yellow alliance.

Origin: From blak. Also a variant of Blake, from blac and Blanc, from blanc.

Webster Dictionary(1.00 / 1 vote)Rate this definition:

Black(adj)

destitute of light, or incapable of reflecting it; of the color of soot or coal; of the darkest or a very dark color, the opposite of white; characterized by such a color; as, black cloth; black hair or eyes

Black(adj)

in a less literal sense: Enveloped or shrouded in darkness; very dark or gloomy; as, a black night; the heavens black with clouds

that which is destitute of light or whiteness; the darkest color, or rather a destitution of all color; as, a cloth has a good black

Black(noun)

a black pigment or dye

Black(noun)

a negro; a person whose skin is of a black color, or shaded with black; esp. a member or descendant of certain African races

Black(noun)

a black garment or dress; as, she wears black

Black(noun)

mourning garments of a black color; funereal drapery

Black(noun)

the part of a thing which is distinguished from the rest by being black

Black(noun)

a stain; a spot; a smooch

Black(adj)

to make black; to blacken; to soil; to sully

Black(adj)

to make black and shining, as boots or a stove, by applying blacking and then polishing with a brush

Freebase(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

Black

Black is the color of coal, ebony, and of outer space. It is the darkest color, the result of the absence of or complete absorption of light. It is the opposite of white and often represents darkness in contrast with light.
Black was one of the first colors used by artists in neolithic cave paintings. In the Roman Empire, it became the color of mourning, and over the centuries it was frequently associated with death, evil, witches and magic. In the 14th century, it began to be worn by royalty, the clergy, judges and government officials in much of Europe. It became the color worn by English romantic poets, businessmen and statesmen in the 19th century, and a high fashion color in the 20th century.
In the Western World today, it is the color most commonly associated with mourning, the end, secrets, magic, power, violence, evil, and elegance.

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

Black

blak, adj. of the darkest colour: without colour: obscure: dismal: sullen: horrible: dusky: foul, dirty: malignant: dark-haired, wearing dark armour or clothes.—n. black colour: absence of colour: a negro: mourning: the dark smut which attacks wheat: a speck of black on the face, a sooty particle in the air: black clothes, esp. dress trousers.—v.t. to make black: to soil or stain: to draw in black.—n.Black′amoor, a black Moor: a negro.—adjs.Black′-and-tan, having black hair on the back, and tan or yellowish-brown elsewhere, esp. of a terrier; Black′-a-vised, of dark complexion (probably originally black-à-vis).—v.t.Black′ball, to reject in voting by putting a black ball into a ballot-box.—ns.Black′balling, the act of so rejecting a candidate; Black′-band, iron ore containing enough of coal to calcine it; Black′-bee′tle, a cockroach; Black′berry, the berry of the bramble; Black′bird, a species of thrush of a black colour: a current name for a negro or Polynesian kidnapped for labour; Black′birding, the kidnapping of such; Black′board, a board painted black, used in schools for writing, forming figures, &c.—adjs.Black′-bod′ing, of evil omen; Black′-browed, having black eyebrows: sullen.—ns.Black′-cap, a bird, a species of warbler, so called from its black crown: (cook.) an apple roasted until it is black, and served up in a custard: the full-dress cap put on by English judges when about to pronounce sentence of death; Black′-catt′le, oxen, bulls, and cows; Black′-chalk, a variety of clay-slate of a bluish-black colour, used for drawing, and also for making black paint; Black′cock, a species of grouse, common in the north of England and in Scotland; Black′-curr′ant, a garden shrub with black fruit used in making preserves; Black′-death, a name given to the plague of the 14th century from the black spots which appeared on the skin; Black′-draught, the popular name for a purgative medicine consisting chiefly of senna and Epsom salts; Black′-drop, a liquid preparation of opium, vinegar, and sugar.—v.t.Black′en, to make black: to defame.—adj.Black′faced, having a black face: dismal.—ns.Black′-flag, the flag of a pirate, or that hoisted at the execution of a criminal—from its colour; Black′-friar, a friar of the Dominican order, so called from his black mantle (over a white woollen habit): (pl.) the region in a city, as London, where their convent stood; Blackguard(blag′ärd), originally applied to the lowest menials about a court, who took charge of the pots, kettles, &c.: a low, ill-conducted fellow.—adj. low: scurrilous.—v.t. to treat as a blackguard; v.i. to play the blackguard.—n.Black′guardism.—adv.Black′guardly.—ns.

Dictionary of Military and Associated Terms(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

black

In intelligence handling, a term used in certain phrases (e.g., living black, black border crossing) to indicate reliance on illegal concealment rather than on cover.

Editors Contribution(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

black

A type of colour with a specific known colour value, saturation and brightness of reflected light.

The color black is used to print most documents of text and images across the world and in ink cartridges.